


Absolutely Adorable

by KnifeBinaryPrince



Series: Lavender Waters and Violet Beaches [7]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Color Blindness, Fluff, Mer Lance (Voltron), Minor Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2018-02-27
Packaged: 2019-02-15 04:13:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,807
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13023003
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KnifeBinaryPrince/pseuds/KnifeBinaryPrince
Summary: Lance + babies, what's more to say?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Friend mentioned how mer bbies would be soft and squishy so I made this because of that.
> 
> No regrets.

“Hey did Terry get the guppies in the green room yet?” Plaxum asked Shay, nearly falling over as she slid and stopped just outside the doorway to the other girl’s office.

“Yeah I think so, would you go check on them and then the mer in the red room for me?”

“Yeah sure, I’ll let you know if there’s anything up, see you!”

Shay barely had time to even wave a goodbye before the eccentric girl was off. She was always excited to see the new guppies that came into the rescue from time to time.

Plaxum rushed through the halls, eager to see the new guppies that had arrived. From what she gathered they were Galra and newborns at that, the pod found killed by hunters. They were lucky to get there in time to save the guppies at least and bring them to the rescue safe and sound. They’d have to be fed and taken care of until they grew big enough to be released back into the ocean, if they could be anyway. Trying to raise a mer of the same species that was rarely able to be documented and with little to no information available on the more intricate details of feeding and the like they were basically going in blind with this one.

She half skipped, half walked to the green room, swiping her card through the key slot and entering with a skip in her step, excited to see the new babies. Or she would have been if there were any in the pool of water that the room floor was sloped down to form said pool. The light green blue water was devoid of any sort of mers, guppies or otherwise, just splashing gently against the dark walls with the sound of the filters running in the background.

Her brows pinched in confusion, maybe Terry hadn’t got them in yet?

Speaking of which…

“Terry hey!” Plaxum called, jogging a bit to catch up to the rescue worker.

“Oh hey Plaxum, what’s up?” They asked, setting the box of medical supplies down to give her their undivided attention.

“You brought the new guppies in right? The Galra newborns?”

“Uh yeah, I put them in the green room like Rax said when they came in, why?”

“They’re not there.”

“Are you sure?” Terry asked, a puzzled look washing over their face as they followed her back to the green room to see.

“This isn’t the room I put them in.” They commented after a moment, eyes peering inside of the empty room, the sound of the filter and water echoing through the cool room.

“Rax told you to put them in the green room, this is the green room.” Plaxum stated, getting exceedingly nervous about where exactly Terry put the baby mers.

“The green room has the green sign on the door right? The room down the next hall?” Confusion and a bit of nervous fear tinging their voice.

“Shit show me!” Plaxum rushed, pushing Terry along to move and show her the room.

They both hurried, Plaxum following Terry down the hallway where they had said they put the guppies.

Which also happened to be the isolation rooms they kept injured or recovering mers.

“This one.”

Plaxum gently pushed them aside to look into the room.

It was empty save for a mer, pretty and oddly familiar shades of blue blending with white, pearlescent stripes that stretched to multiple spiny fins, long spines laid flat against it’s back and tail. It was curled up facing away from them, possibly sleeping, although she never knew a mer to sleep out of the water unless they were sunning.

There were no signs of any mer pups though.

“Th-that mer wasn’t there before I swear!” Terry panicked, running their hands through their hair, already a nervous wreck. The mer had likely been napping in the deeper pool of water, hence why they hadn’t been seen before.

The reason for the panicking was more practical.

It was more or less common knowledge in the rescue center and anyone that knew about mers that pups were really just easy snacks for any mer outside of the family pod, newborns especially.

Keeping that fact in mind, it was very likely that said mer had been…fed early so to speak.

Fuck.

Plaxum was about to calm them down when a small sound drew her attention back to the room with the mer.

“Holy shit.”

* * *

One of the pups chirped and squeaked, chubby little arms sticking out and waving around until they met skin and scales, clawless fingers complete with soft, squishy pads squeezed the skin and blue scales under their little hands. The mer in question lifted his face and drew closer, pressing his nose into baby soft skin, still too new and fresh to turn into the tough, plated hide that the Galra were known to have.

The small pup let out a series of small chirps and squeaks, stirring her brother and sister awake as well. All three were now squirming, their soft leg like fins flapping; two on each side running down along their tail tipped with barely visible claws, still too soft to do any real damage.

Lance curled his tail tighter around the three to keep them from rolling deeper into the water, a loud rumbling purr reverberating through his chest and calming the tiny pups.

He winced when one of them bumped against his cast covered arm, the many stitches in his arm aggravated by the movement. He’d gotten sliced pretty badly on the metal of a broken, sunken ship. And he was pretty sure there was now a jagged line of missing scales on his left arm now. He’d gone to shore before the blood could really cloud the water, catching the attention of the humans nearby.

Hours later he had woken up in a room of white with a pool just deep enough for him to move and nap comfortably. And he’d went and taken another nap only to wake up and exit the pool to find three squirming pups about, still fresh and new and absolutely adorable. It didn’t take long for Lance to round them up, curling his tail around them carefully, spines raising up defensively in a protective barrier around them.

He had some experience taking care of Galra pups from when he was younger, his family pod had been large and mixed, which often found him watching the younger pups, Galra included.

The brother in the small brood made a high chirping sound, clearly distressed about something. Lance turned his attention from his sister to the other pup, licking a stripe up his face to soothe him. The small thing's cries quieted after that, squirming going down to a minimum, clearly content with the attention. He nuzzled against his soft cheek, huffing quietly in amusement when small, babbling sounds left the pup’s mouth in response to the affections.

The pups’ eyes were all closed, still too young to be able to fully open them. Their cheeks were fat and soft to the touch, making their faces look round and plump, perfect for squishing and nuzzling against, something Lance did quite often with these three. He smiled when one of the sisters reached up and grabbed at his face with soft, chubby hands, her pads extra soft and carrying that new pup smell.

When they had finally settled down Lance took that time to curl his tail tighter around them, able to lay his head on his own tail as well to get settled in for a nap, purposely ignoring the muffled voices outside of his room so as not to stir the pups awake again.

* * *

“This is cute, I need my camera, where’s my camera?” Plaxum said, squealing in excitement as she ran down the hall to her office, leaving Terry to calm down from their prior heart attack.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance + guppies = more cuteness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mmmmm there might actually be more chapters to this, I'm quite enjoying these cute snippets.

Bright gold eyes opened for the first time in weeks, the owner of said eyes looking wildly around after taking the time to blink, trying to view everything at once in wonder, curious garbles leaving their tiny mouth from behind small fangs. Until a mer's face entered it’s line of sight, pupils blowing wide as they were shaded from the bright light above and now looking curiously at the face just above them. Bubbles of drool left their mouth as they squirmed and splashed in the small pool of water they were laying in, surrounded by their protector’s tail.

Blue eyes came into view, contrasting against dark skin that made the color pop out even more and held the pup’s attention for some time, their splashing ceasing at the sight of such a bright color. Having known darkness for so long something as bright and colorful as Lance was something new and interesting.

Lance moved his face closer to the small pup, huffing as he nosed along their cheek and licked a stripe over their neck, smooth tongue cleaning away any dirt or grime from their neck and gills. There was barely any left that clung to them too long anyways with how meticulously Lance kept them all clean.

The other pups within the small “nest” of his tail squirmed and chirped, having opened their own eyes after their sister. Looking curiously around them they turned and rolled, eager to see everything at once yet still physically incapable of doing so properly as fast as they wanted, making Lance huff in amusement as they chirped and garbled in frustrated guppy babble. At least until their attention focused on the mer that had been with them the past few weeks, faces open and in awe of a mer so colorful.

High pitched chirps that ended in joyful squeaks echoed through the small room. And soon enough Lance had three small pups wiggling cutely over to him, little flipper like fins scraping against the stone floor to reach him as fast as they possibly could. Lance watched them with amusement in his eyes, a low rumble rolling through his chest as he watched them make their way over to him, shuffling and pushing each other out of the way to reach his arms.

One of the girls reached him first, tiny but sharp claws digging into his scales so she could get a good grip. He ignored the sharp pinpricks of pain in favor of rewarding her for her efforts with sweet nuzzles against her cheek and an encouraging rumble, making sure her siblings received the same treatment once they had made their own way over after her.

Now they all just wiggled and rolled, trying to either bury themselves in the crook of his arm or get past him just to crawl on his back, his spines lifting to keep the small pups at bay. Which didn’t do much since they only made loud squealing sounds when he laid his spines down on top of the curious pups, who only tried to beat their tails against him to free themselves.

He lifted the spines again, a huff of amusement leaving him when he saw the small pups roll over in surprise, small mouths open with surprise when they fell headfirst into the pool of water.

Both sisters popped right back up, little squeaks and chirps of curiosity filling the room around them as they splashed freely, Lance keeping a watchful eye on both them and the pup nestled in his arms.

Not that he’d have to worry much about him.

The only brother of the three was sleeping soundly, unbothered by his sisters' noises in the background. Curled up with his fins tucked in he seemed at peace, eyes closed and tiny claws flexing against the cast covered arm, chubby purple cheek mashed against his arm and causing his mouth to pucker like it was being squished between gentle hands.

Frantic splashing caught Lance’s attention, uncurling his tail so it could lay floating in the water. Both sisters clung to his fins, each trying to grab the other over his tail and trying to unsuccessfully hit the other off.

His flukes lifted up, the bright, silk like fins shimmering in various hues of blues and iridescent white catching the attention of both siblings, who watched in awe before squealing in delight when said fins shook, spraying droplets of water in every direction.

Nearly an hour of play later the two were tuckered out, laying out weaved among the spines on his tail, tiny hands grasping onto the base of the spines to keep from slipping off as they napped.

Lance stood vigilant over them, ear fins twitching at the sounds just outside of the room, eyes focused on the door, fully prepared to defend the pups if necessary.

* * *

“When do they get released?” Florona asked curiously, looking inside of the small room at the pseudo family that slept inside. Or three of them slept at least, the blue mer they had taken in about two or three weeks ago was wide awake and alert, focused on the door, looking every bit wound up.

“In another week or so, they’ll be released together back where we found Blue since we can’t really separate them now. They’ve already imprinted on him and it wouldn’t do any good to separate them.” Plaxum said, struggling to get some older mer pups off her ankles as she left their nursery room, little chirps and garbles leaving them as she finally got her leg free and closed the door.

“How are they going to get them all out? He gets riled up even when we put food through the door.” Florona asked quietly, moving aside to let Plaxum look and see.

“Probably sedate Blue here and carry them all out together with the pups awake. They’re not as big as they could be so it should be easy.” Plaxum explained, walking back with Florona to the main tanks and leaving the small family to their own devices for the time being.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The babies meet Keith?
> 
> I don't fucking know anymore it's cute

When Lance awoke it was to bright sunlight and warm sand under his scales. The sound of the ocean was a welcoming one, a rush of wind bringing with it the scent of the sea. 

There was a moment where he was calm and relaxed, a low hum of a purr rolling through his chest at the feeling of warm sunlight on his skin and scales. 

And then instant panic when he realized the three pups weren’t in his immediate line of sight, a panic that soon dampened when he felt something squirming under the middle of his tail. 

Rolling over revealed the pups curled up in a clumsily made hole, the sisters making small sounds of protest at the light they were now exposed to. The brother was chirping more in protest at all the noise his sisters were making, crawling out from the hole towards where he had heard Lance move to. 

Lance met him halfway, soothing rumbles leaving him to help lead the small pup towards him. 

The only brother of the three was blind Lance had come to find out, the small thing having made a habit of seeking Lance out on land or in water, too frightened of being along in his own darkness to stray far from his siblings and parent. 

 

The two girls, seeing their brother getting affection and wanting some too, went quiet as they struggled to leave the hole they had made earlier to escape from the sun’s heat and shining rays, pulling themselves towards the two while struggling with getting a good grip on the not so solid ground that was sand. 

An amused sound left Lance as he watched them, curling his tail over towards them so he could help, the pups grabbing onto the smaller spines to help drag themselves on his tail. Once that feat was accomplished they half wiggled, half slithered over his tail, crowding their brother to reach Lance. 

Said mer checked them over for injuries, but besides a bit of sunburn they were fine, shying away from his licks when he tried to soothe their wounds. He’d have to find something for those later. Galra weren’t all too used to bright light, let alone sun. Even if they were from brighter waters. 

 

One of Lance’s ear fins lifted up at the sound of one the sisters hissing sharply, small and high-pitched at whatever was behind Lance. His fins flared up, a growl coming up from his chest as he turned to face the threat, his whole demeanor doing a one-eighty when he actually saw what it was. 

Keith was behind him, having waited for Lance’s return from the humans patiently for days on end. Instead of looking at Lance however he was looking at the small pup that was challenging him, her fins rigid against the sand so she could stand her ground and protect her family. 

Lance admired her bravery, a soft amused sound escaping him as he pushed against her with his hand, fingers curled to keep his claws from hurting her. 

She chirped at him, confused as to why her adoptive parent wasn’t worried about the strange mer before them. Her siblings watched from among Lance’s spines, the brother snuggled against his sister’s side, listening to all that was transpiring. 

 

Lance smiled, calling Keith over with a short bark. 

 

Said mer looked nervous, approaching slowly and carefully towards the four of them, flinching when the first pup he laid eyes on hissed and puffed up, trying to look bigger than what she was. 

She instantly shrunk back when Lance reprimanded her gently, giving her a reassuring sound that this one was okay. 

A questioning warble left Keith, wondering why and how he acquired these pups. 

Lance only gave a few chirps and low warbles in answer, watching as the pups dared to come out of hiding to view the stranger in their presence. 

The brother was the first to reach Keith surprisingly, little hands grasping onto his fingers, the much larger male freezing in place, not wanting to hurt him in any way, even accidentally. 

Lance smiled, pulling himself towards Keith to nuzzle sweetly against the skin where neck met shoulder, trying to reassure him that yes, he could touch the pups and they wouldn’t break. 

 

Keith snorted, nipping at Lance’s jaw playfully before he redirected his attention to the pups. The other two had carefully come out of hiding from within Lance’s spines and side, watching him curiously with big, golden eyes. They still clung close to Lance, not straying too far from him since they were still somewhat apprehensive about Keith even with Lance’s reassurance. 

The one that had latched onto his hand was squeezing his fingers in timed intervals, sniffing at his tougher scales, more than likely not used to scales like his if he’d been snuggled with Lance while he was with the humans. Lance had considerably smoother scales than him, able to run his hands down his tail without his skin catching on any that were out of place or rough. 

The small thing rubbed its face against his wrist, pushing his head against him and dipping so far down he rolled and fell to the side with a surprised squeak. Lance let out something akin to a small laugh of amusement, the other two sisters approaching closer to Keith at the apparent lack of threat, their brother being playful with the mer helping in their decision to approach. 

 

Keith stood as still as could be as the pups came towards him curiously, trying to look as non-threatening as possible as they neared him. They sniffed around him, one of the sisters batting her hand on him like a cat who was curious about an object and yet too cautious to be totally comfortable with it, something that made him smile as he watched. 

When they deemed him safe they grew bold, dragging themselves to his tail and climbing over onto the mass of sharp, plated scales. Keith was panicking a bit, seeing as how they were only a few weeks old and still fairly new his scales could cute them. The pups didn’t seem to mind nor care, rolling and rubbing themselves on his scales without a care. 

 

They loved him. 

 

Keith curled his tail up around them, something that amazed the small pups. Seeing as how they’d never seen a mer’s tail move as fluidly besides Lance’s so this was something new and interesting. 

The two sisters played their own game of using Keith as a speed bump. Doing their own form of crawls and enthusiastic jumps over his tail, trying to knock the other off in the process which only resulted in both rolling and chittering loudly as they fell to the sand. 

 

Only to get back up and repeat it all over again. 

 

Keith looked up as Lance chirped, the other having dragged himself down towards the water, the brother of the three nestled snugly in his spines, having snuck away from Keith when he wasn’t looking. 

 

He’d need to keep an eye on that one. 

 

The darker colored mer followed after Lance, moving carefully as to not disturb the pups too much. He soon learned it was for nothing as they tumbled anyway, curious squeaks filling the air as they turned to look affronted towards Keith, like he should’ve known better than to move when he was obviously being used for play. 

Their short lived surprise soon passed when they looked towards Lance and the ocean before them, curious chirps and warbles leaving them as they struggled to crawl towards it, eager to see what lay below the surface. 

Keith carefully escorted them towards the water’s edge, nudging the two gently with his hands towards it, giving what he hoped was a reassuring smile to encourage them forward. 

The one sister with a mane of hair growing down the middle of her head started first, doing to it what she had done to Keith earlier and batted at it with her hand, small chirps of surprise leaving her at the feeling of warm salt water. 

 

It was Lance that had finally convinced them to come in, barking at them from where he was already a few feet deep, their brother swimming around him, keep one tiny clawed hand touching Lance's tail as to not stray too far. It would take some time before he’d be able to navigate his way through the waters safely, especially alone, so until then he’d stick close to Lance. 

The sisters swam towards him, circling the both of them with high chirps and excited splashing. Keith entered the water after them, sidling up towards Lance’s side and giving him a low rumble. 

 

He had a lot of explaining to do. 

 

And who knew how the others would react. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hm...might continue it on a later date but I don't want to keep anyone waiting for a shitload of time so for now it's completed but a next chapter is possible


End file.
